Game 2 Preview - Name and Gameplay

Happy Monday everyone! I'm sure a lot of you are wondering what sort of gameplay to expect from this new game, and you're also probably wondering what the heck the title will be. Here is an unexpectedly long dev update with all that information! :)

The new game will be named Soulspire. It's quite a dramatic name, but I think it fits very well on multiple levels (almost all of which are spoilers). The most relevant and important reason is that the game takes place almost entirely within the confines of a magical tower, so... A name with spire/tower makes a lot of sense. I think the name is pretty catchy, plus it sounds mystical and magic-y, so it'll work very well with the vibe I'm going for. :)

Alright, gameplay. I know that PoP was a fairly kinetic visual novel, in that you didn't have a lot of major choices besides the romance paths. Soulspire, by contrast, will have actual gameplay elements, so this won't just be something you can play by smashing spacebar or left-click for hours on end. I currently have two core game loops planned - one resource management-related and one (reverse) training-related.

Resource Management: Basically the entire game takes place in an isolated magical tower, so food and other resources are obviously going to be an issue. There will be a fairly simple resource management system where you need to make sure you're bringing in as much as you're using. I won't get too into the weeds of the mechanics right now, but it's not going to be a survival sim in terms of needing to explore/hunt/gather; food and other resources are generated automatically, and it's up to you (the player) to use your in-game time and other resources to optimize how much of each resource is generated per day to meet whatever need you have (building a stockpile of certain resources, focusing on a certain questline, etc.).

Training: This game will have a couple of stat management aspects. Some of the stats (such as fitness or affection) will start low and need to be raised via interactions, quests, etc. Some of the stats (such as corruption) will start very high and need to be lowered in the same way. And lastly, some of the stats (such as lust) will need to be balanced for whatever need you have (ie. unlocking scenes, progressing quests, specific interactions, etc.).

I call this game a reverse trainer because the second LI (not introduced yet) begins the game possessed by a powerful succubus. If the succubus fully takes over that LI's mind, then she can kill everyone, eat their souls, and escape to wreak havoc on the world. Naturally, as wholesome heroes, the solution is to do nice, wholesome things with this succubus-possessed woman to lower the succubus's influence (corruption) over her. Of course, the presence of the succubus and the magical auras surrounding her will resist that, causing increases in lust, increasing corruption gain as the game progresses, and other fun challenges along the way. I think it'll be a very fun and interesting twist on the usual trainer-style games.

As I've said before and will continue to say, Soulspire will always be character- and plot-focused, so the gameplay is designed to support the plot and character development. My biggest goal with the gameplay is to provide lots of opportunities for interaction with the LIs, which will help develop their characters and make them feel even more real and help you, the player, connect with them more on an emotional level.